North Carolina Drug Supplier to Henrico Drug Dealers
Sentenced to 24 Years in Prison

AUG 08 (RICHMOND, Va.) -Carlos A. Cooke, age 38, of High Point, North Carolina, Virginia, was sentenced to 24 years in prison on his guilty plea to conspiring to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine.

Special Agent in Charge Karl C. Colder of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Field Division; Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Shannon L. Taylor, Commonwealth Attorney for Henrico County; and Douglas A. Middleton, Chief of Henrico Police Division, made the announcement after the sentencing before United States District Judge Henry E. Hudson.

In the Statement of Facts signed as part of his guilty plea, Cooke admitted that from 2007 to 2013 he distributed between five and 15 kilograms of cocaine from North Carolina to dealers in Henrico and Urbanna, Virginia. He would negotiate on the telephone to supply those dealers with distribution quantities of cocaine, typically as high as 375 grams at a time. Tomeka Wimbush, age 36, of Martinsville, Virginia, would transport the drugs to the Virginia dealers, and then return with the proceeds, which she gave to Cooke. Wimbush was sentenced on August 5, 2014 to 51 months in prison.

This case is part of an 18-month OCDETF investigation, Operation Carolina and Back, that targeted Cooke and his Virginia customers. In addition to Cooke and Wimbush, eight Henrico dealers and one Urbanna dealer have pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges. Darryl Delaney, a Henrico dealer, was sentenced to 156 months’ imprisonment; Gordon Shelton, also a Henrico dealer, was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment. The other Henrico dealers, Stevenson Silencieux, Charles Kates, Kevin Lee, Kelley Brown, Eric Wingate and Donte Beard, are awaiting sentencing. Charles Epps, the drug dealer operating in Urbanna, is also awaiting sentencing.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Henrico County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, and the Henrico Police Division. David T. Maguire, Assistant United States Attorney, and Matthew C. Ackley, Special Assistant United States Attorney; and Henrico County Regional Drug Prosecutor, are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.